A new chapter in NASCAR Whelen Euro Series history has been written at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben in Germany. Patrick Schober scored his maiden EuroNASCAR 2 win and also put Double V Racing’s #27 Ford Mustang in Victory Lane for the first time.
The Austrian, who joined the overall podium in the Czech Republic, had a stellar run and crossed the finish line ahead of Race Art Technology’s Thomas Toffel and Team Bleekemolen’s Melvin de Groot in a 16-lap race packed with intense action.
Unperturbed by this, Schober took the lead on lap nine in a battle against Gil Linster, who later served his drive through penalty for an incident with Alberto Naska in the fight for the lead. Afterwards, Schober never gave his competitors a single chance to catch the Double V Racing Ford. By bringing home an emotional maiden race win in EuroNASCAR, the 19-year old will make a huge step up in the overall standings as he moved to fifth. Now, the Austrian is looking to end the 2023 EuroNASCAR 2 season inside the overall Top-5.
CLUB CHALLENGE
The German race weekend starts on Friday with the Club Challenge. Viktor Schiffer is looking for important points to move up the general classification after the unfortunate round in Most.
It’s a new track for all the teams so the first and second day are particularly crowded and finding the reference points on the pace is difficult due to the heavy on-track traffic. However, the Mustang #27 performs well, and Schiffer quickly gains confidence on the German asphalt. It’s only in turn 3 that the Club drivers are the only ones on the track, but despite the car being perfect and the lower traffic, Viktor does not find enough continuity on the lap and closes his race in P6 with some regrets.
EN 2
After the encouraging third place in Most, Schober is looking to confirm the positive moment, and the overall Top-5 is not far away, but good placements are needed. Good qualifying on Saturday morning, Patrick will start in Race 1 from P7.
Race 1 is uncertain, Oschersleben has few overtaking zones and a high risk of contact. The start is conservative and Schober loses a position by having to stay on the outside of the first corner to avoid contact. But the #27 Ford Mustang is very fast and immediately begins its comeback. On lap 3 he overtook Benedetti and began a good duel with De Groot, managing to overtake him with a great move on lap 7. Taking advantage of a Linster’s #50 problem, Patrick overtakes him on lap 13, finishing the race in P5
Race 2 is already in EuroNASCAR history: Schober starts from P5 and, on the second lap, capitalizes on a contact between Naska and Linster, moving up to P3, behind Cappelli and Linster. The Italian driver of #18 is quickly overtaken by Patrick who immediately goes in pursuit of the first position. The masterpiece is complete on lap 9: Patrick performs an almost impossible overtaking on Linster’s #50, deservedly taking the lead of the race and closing the gap behind him. In the following laps, despite a safety car that brings his competitors closer, Schober firmly maintains P1 and wins the first race in EN2.
